pimiii1 


Early 

American  Ironwork. 


V 


Wa  1 


Nutting 


ace 


Copyright,  1919,  by  Wdlldce  Nutting,  Inc. 


WROUGHT  IRON  *  PRICE  LIST 


March  ,  1923 


The  following  list  shows  the  actual  number  of  each  piece 
of  hand  made  wrought  iron  that  we  have  on  hand  at  the  present 
time.  The  prices  are  net,  f.o.b.  Ashland,  Mass,  All  orders 
sent  to  us  are  subject  to  stock  on  hand. 

We  also  have  in  our  black  smith  shop  at  Ashland,  a 
larger  quantity  of  partially  furnished  pieces.  If  you  are 
interested  in  anything  shown  in  this  catalog,  we  will  be 
glad  to  tell  you  more  about  it. 


11 

pr.  1-404 

@  $  7.00 

1 

1-147 

@  $10.00 

4 

1-406 

ii 

12 . 50 

8 

1-135 

II 

14.00 

1 

1-401  . 

ti 

11.00 

3 

1-132 

II 

12.00 

3 

1-403 

ii 

9.50 

1 

1-145 

11 

8.50 

7 

1-407 

ii 

10.00 

x 

1-146 

s? 

8.00 

2 

1-409 

ii 

10.00 

5 

1-120 

I! 

24.00 

3 

1-402 

it 

9.50 

1 

1-150 

II 

5 . 00 

1 

1-180 

it 

9.50 

1 

1-303 

n 

16.00 

2 

1-182 

ii 

4.50 

3 

1-305 

ti 

12.00 

]_ 

1-12 

t> 

4.25 

1 

1-306 

n 

7.00 

5 

1-41 

it 

4.50 

1 

1-308 

ii 

8.00 

1 

1-43 

n 

4.00 

1 

1-307 

it 

7.00 

18 

1-35 

ri 

3.50 

2 

1-302 

ti 

7.00 

1 

1-87 

n 

9.00 

4 

1-251 

n 

15.00 

6 

1-457 

ti 

6.00 

1 

1-255 

ii 

17.00 

•a 

1-450 

ii 

6.00 

1 

1-256 

ti 

6.50 

4 

1-474 

n 

3 . 50 

1 

1-258 

n 

8 . 50 

1 

1-478 

n 

14.00 

1 

1-250 

tt 

12.00 

2 

1-451 

ii 

2 . 50 

2 

1-215 

it 

4.50 

1 

1-452 

ii 

2.50 

33 

1-212 

ti 

4.50 

2 

1-454 

ii 

4.00 

11 

1-245 

ii 

3 . 50 

1 

1-455 

ti 

4.50 

2 

1-246 

ti 

4.50 

1 

1-456 

ii 

6.00 

5 

1-247 

ti 

4.50 

2 

1-114 

it 

22.50 

14 

1-52 

tt 

2.25 

J. 

1-106 

it 

30.00 

8 

4  ii 

1-11 

n 

2.25 

12 

1-113 

n 

12.50 

1 

1-13 

it 

2.75 

2 

1-100 

ii 

22.50 

1 

1-3 

ii 

3.50 

2 

1-103 

n 

22.50 

11 

9" 

1-2 

it 

4 . 00 

2 

1-102 

n 

21.00 

11 

14 

”1—2 

it 

4.50 

p 

1-121 

ii 

21.00 

25  ■ 

1-1 

it 

2.00 

4 

shovels 

!  ” 

4. CO 

6 

1-21 

ti 

^  OR 

1 

1-101 

ti 

24. 00 

49 

1-82 

ti 

4.00 

5 

1-104 

II 

24 . 00 

79 

1-38 

it 

7.00 

2 

1-136 

11 

18.00 

1 

1-32 

it 

2.75 

2 

1-134 

li 

8 . 50 

7 

1-73 

ti 

10.50 

6 

1-148 

t; 

10.00 

3 

1-71 

ii 

34.50 

2 

1-149 

if 

12.00 

2 

1-352 

it 

4.00 

2 

1-162 

it 

20.00 

2 

1-304 

tt 

3.00 

1 

1-161 

li 

15.00 

68 

1-391 

ti 

2.20 

1 

1-163 

ti 

9.00 

72 

1-390 

it 

2.70 

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I 


THE  IKON  WORKS  HOUSE,  SAUGUS 


Early  American  Ironwork 

ELABORATE  ironwork  has  been  set  forth  in  more  than  one  publication,  but  hitherto 
no  attempt  has  been  made  to  show  the  simple  ironwork  of  the  colonial  days  in  America. 
The  “Iron  Works  House”  shown  above  was  the  residence  of  the  first  successful  iron 
master  in  America. 

Joseph  Jenks  was  a  great  figure  in  his  day,  and  has  profoundly  affected  the  growth  of 
our  country.  Perhaps  more  than  any  other  early  American  he  made  America  possible;  for 
he  invented  the  long  scythe,  which  made  it  possible  for  one  man  to  mow  as  many  blades 
of  grass  as  three  mowed  before. 

The  bush  scythe  as  we  know  it  was  the  English  implement.  It  could  not  be  made  longer 
without  becoming  unwieldy.  Joseph  Jenks  first  got  the  idea  of  turning  up  the  back  of 
the  blade.  He  invented  the  angle  iron.  He  made  a  long  scythe  which  weighed  no  more 
than  the  old  short  one.  This  invention  spread  from  the  house,  his  home,  across  America, 
and  before  the  mowing  machine  this  scythe  enabled  the  farmer  to  subdue  the  earth  so  that 
the  whole  land  was  overspread. 

Joseph  Jenks  was  as  picturesque  and  interesting  as  he  was  inventive.  He  made  here 
the  die  for  the  pine-tree  shilling,  our  first  coin,  and  he  also  stamped  by  his  sturdy  spirit  of 
liberty  the  impress  of  freedom  on  the  new  country.  This  smith,  “a  mighty  man  was  he.” 
He  was  not  afraid  to  say  that  the  head  of  Charles  II  ought  to  follow  that  of  his  father, 
though  he  went  to  prison  for  it.  His  wife,  read  out  in  church  for  wearing  lace  on  her 
bonnet,  kept  this  house  for  him,  the  seat  of  the  ironworks,  with  its  big  rooms,  its  “largest 
American  brick  chimney,”  and  its  rare  side  overhang  —  one  of  the  best  of  the  earliest 
houses  in  America. 


m 


THE  HEARTH  IX  THE  FIRE  ROOM,  IRON  WORKS  HOUSE 


Fireplace  Furniture 

THERE  is  shown  above  the  wonderful  old  fire 
room  and  fireplace  in  the  Iron  Works  House. 
It  is  about  ten  feet  across.  On  the  opposite  side  of 
the  chimney  there  is  another  fireplace  about  the 
same  size.  In  the  same  side  of  the  same  chimney  in 
the  lean-to  is  another  fireplace,  so  that  the  chimney 
on  the  ground  floor  has  the  dimensions  of  about 
11  x  18  feet  and  the  question  of  the  fireplace  furni¬ 
ture  becomes  an  important  one. 

The  clock-work  jack,  shown  in  position  above, 
turned  the  rod  below  which  rested  on  the  large 
andiron.  This  method  antedated  many  years  the 
tin  oven,  which  didn’t  come  in  until  around  1790 
and  was  a  declension  from  the  earlier,  stronger  style. 

The  small  andirons  in  the  rear,  holding  up  the 
back  logs,  were  called  firedogs.  They  were  for  use, 
while  the  larger  andirons  were  for  ornament,  as 
was  also  the  spit  rod.  The  meat  of  Queen  Victoria 
was  cooked  on  an  arrangement  like  this  during  all 
her  life. 

The  smoke-jack  shown  opposite  is  in  the  chimney 
of  the  Wentworth-Gardner  House,  and  it  was  re¬ 
volved  by  the  smoke  draft.  If  this  is  not  unique, 
it  is  the  only  one  the  writer  has  seen.  He  has  heard 
of  one  or  two  but  is  unable  to  verify  the  report. 


1-476 


1-404 


1-406 


1-401 


KING  TOP 


HEART  AND  OCTAGON 


CROOKED  OCTAGON 


1-404 


1-407 


1-409 


GOOSE  NECK 


VERTICAL  BALL 


FLAT  BALL 


1-408 


1-402 


1-400 


BENT-NECK  BALL 


SCROLL 


COLONIAL  Cl'RL 


[3] 


[4] 


1-432 


1-430 


1-431 


1-457 


THE  pieces  shown  above  are  quaint  fireplace  furniture.  As  a  rule  there  are  plenty  somewhat  like  1-457 
that  are  picked  up  in  the  antique.  Of  the  design  1-470  a  number  of  examples  have  been  found.  The 
top  lifts  up.  The  two  designs  at  the  bottom  of  the  page  are  probably  of  English  origin.  1-477  is  a  com¬ 
bination  of  a  small  crane  with  a  trivet.  The  crane  may  be  removed. 


[5] 


[6] 


some  cases  these  are  the  photographs  of  the  originals.  The  solidest  type  is  No.  1-103,  as  it  has  small  arches 
at  the  base.  No.  1-104  is  called  the  Knickerbocker  design,  as  it  is  a  copy  of  the  one  owned  by  the  City  of 
New  York  in  the  old  City  Hall. 


At  the  bottom  of  the  page  appear  heads  of  shovels  and  tongs. 


J ALL  sconces  are  among  the  rarest  of  American  objects  of  house  hardware.  In  some  cases  we  have 
not  been  able  to  find  anything  at  all  satisfactory.  We  do,  however,  show  a  design  below  which 
appears  both  with  one,  two,  and  three  candleholders.  The  pigtail  ornaments  are  very  quaint  and  they  serve, 

incidentally,  as  receptacles  for  snuffers 
or  any  light  article  of  that  kind.  For  the 
most  part  in  the  ancient  day  wall  sconces 
were  not  in  use,  for  the  reason  that  the 
light  was  dim  enough  at  the  best  and  it 
was  important  to  bring  it  as  close  to  the 
sitter  as  possible.  For  that  reason  chairs 
are  found  with  sockets  for  the  attach¬ 
ment  of  sconces  and  one  such  is  in  the 
Iron  Works  House.  In  other  instances 
candlestands  were  held  in  the  hand  by 
the  reader,  but  the  abundance  of  very 
small  light  stands  indicates  that  such 
stands  were  moved  about  to  bring  them 
very  near  the  chair  where  the  reader 
sat. 

A  quaint  light  which  is  shown  in 
many  of  Mr.  Nutting’s  pictures  is  called 
the  “Betty  lamp,”  made  sometimes  of 
cast  iron  and  sometimes  of  tin.  It  was 
in  the  sauce-boat  shape  and  remained 
in  use  in  the  South  until  a  late  period, 
although  it  is  practically  like  the  lamps 
of  classical  Greek  and  even  earlier  origin. 


1-136.  THREE-LIGHT  SCONCE 


[8] 


1-151 


1-134 


The  swing  (over  all)  of  the  torch  or  lantern  holder  above  is  22  inches  ;  the  height  (over  all)  is  25  inches 


ABOVE  is  shown  on  the  left,  first  a  large  wall  lantern  holder  which  is  hinged  to  swing  where  wanted. 

Below  is  a  single  wall  sconce.  The  pieces  on  the  right  are  table  candlestands  of  about  a  foot  and  a 
half  in  height.  The  cross-bar  is  adjustable  for  height,  moving  up  and  down  on  the  standard.  These  are 
very  interesting  and  unusual  pieces. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  page  appear  some  very  rare  and  interesting  chandeliers  or  loom  lights. 


[9] 


9 


IN  BRASS,  1-144,  IN  IRON,  1-144  1-147 

TOTAL  HEIGHT,  20  INCHES 


Table  Lights 

the  left  above  is  shown  a  table  light  in  tin  with  painted  enamel  finish.  The  candle-bar  may  be  raised 
or  lowered,  as  can  also  the  shades  over  the  candles.  A  piece  is  provided  with  an  extension  and  the  base 
is  slightly  weighted.  The  standard  is  made  of  square  iron,  and  is  finished  by  a  brass  handle  with  a  milled 
edge  where  it  connects  with  the  standard.  This  piece  is  very  handsome  also  in  brass. 

It  is  probable  that  in  the  earliest  homes  the  lights  were  only  pine  knots.  The  historic  instance  of  the 
revered  President  Lincoln  is  within  the  memory  of  some  now  living.  He  used  such  lights.  The  next  thing 
following  was  the  rush  light,  shown  elsewhere,  and  then  the  common  candle,  not  moulded  but  dipped.  Our 
ancestors  also  used  bayberries,  from  which  they  extracted  wax.  Such  candles  are  still  made,  to  supply 
the  taste  of  those  who  have  a  love  for  the  antique. 


[10] 


1-135 


1-132 

1-125.  SNUFFERS 


Movable  Candlesticks 

ON  the  bottom  of  the  page  to  the  right  is  an  extremely  quaint  old  design  for  a  candleholder,  copied  from 
the  original  in  the  Metropolitan  Museum.  It  is  perhaps  of  foreign  derivation.  The  pan^  and 
candleholders  attached  move  up  and  down  on  the  standard.  The  pan  is  daintily  shaped,  being  ten-sided, 
with  each  sector  slightly  concaved.  The  legs  and  the  brackets  are  nicely  twisted  and  a  quaint  scroll  serves 
as  a  spring  to  keep  the  movable  candleholders  in  place.  The  design  of  the  pan  was  doubtless  to  catch  the 
drip  of  the  candle.  At  the  top  there  is  a  hook  by  which  the  piece  could  be  lifted  and  carried  about,  as  also  in 
1-146.  1-145  has  a  handle  below  the  candleholder  and  the  standard  has  a  turned  knob. 

At  the  top  of  the  page  on  the  right  is  shown  1-132,  which  is  a  very  quaint  and  curious  pair  of  snuffers 
with  the  interesting  colonial  curl  of  the  handles.  These  are  found  in  two  sizes.  The  point  of  the  snuffers 
was  to  pick  out  the  wick  and  increase  the  quantity  of  the  light. 

On  page  1 2  at  the  bottom  are  seen  three  varieties  of  rush-light  holders.  The  two  on  the  left  show  a  place 
for  a  candle  also.  The  candle  was  used  in  honor  of  guests,  and  the  weight  of  the  socket  served  to  close  the 
nippers  which  ordinarily  were  used  to  close  down  on  the  rush  light  held  in  them. 


1-145 


1-146 


[U] 


1-120 

1-119.  TALL  FOR  FLOOR 


1-130.  TWELVE-LIGHT  CHANDELIER.  IRON  AND  TIN. 

A  less  number  of  lights  may  be  provided,  but  less  than  eight  would  not  be  satisfactory  in  style. 


1-141 


1-152 

THE  ADJUSTABLE  SCONCE  AT  THE  TOP  IS  NO.  1-140 
[12] 


1-150 


1-251  1-252  1-253 

26  in.  22J-2  in.  27  in. 


ABOVE  are  shown  nine  designs  of  quaint  knockers;  1-300  is  the  most  elaborate.  These  varieties  in 
dimensions  are  from  about  four  to  six  inches.  They  are  all  made  either  plain,  as  shown,  or  attach 
through  the  post  on  the  other  side  of  the  door  with  a  combination  latch. 

The  latches  shown  on  this  page  are  all  designed  for  outside  doors  and  some  are  very  large  and  handsome. 


ABOVE  are  shown  several  quaint  designs  of  latches.  The  heart  design  at  the  top  on  the  left  is  good,  and 
■  also  the  so-called  rounded  triangle  at  the  right;  in  the  center  of  the  top,  various  sizes  of  catches, 
otherwise  called  strikers  for  the  latches,  are  provided  so  as  to  match  the  size  of  the  latch  itself.  As  a  rule 
we  make  our  strikers  with  a  scroll  and  brace  at  the  bottom,  as  shown  above.  The  latch  bars  themselves  are 
of  various  sizes  and  designs;  two  are  here  shown.  We  also  make  a  design  with  a  small  pin  or  post  by  which 
the  latch  is  lifted,  and  if  any  special  design  is  required  it  can  be  supplied  on  request.  The  large  scroll  latch  is 
an  outside  piece  found  on  an  old  church. 


Grills  and  Stair-Rails 


WE  do  not  show  any  designs  of  these,  as  we  specialize  more  on  the  house  hardware.  Such  grill  designs 
appear  already  in  other  publications  in  an  extensive  showing.  In  an  order  for  the  entire  hardware 
for  a  house  we  should  be  willing  to  consider  a  minor  order  for  completeness’  sake. 


[14] 


1-244  1-245  1-246  1-247  1-248 


WE  consider  the  design  above,  1-247,  the  most  desirable  of  all  our  latches,  as  it  is  quaint  and  at  the 
same  time  reasonable  in  cost.  Below  is  shown  a  remarkable  large  brass  box-lock.  This  is  attached 
to  the  door  by  a  plate  on  which  it  is  slid  with  wrought  hooks  to  attach  it  so  that  no  screw  appears  except  one  at 
each  end  of  the  edge  of  the  main  lock  and  the  striker.  The  special  merit  is  that  it  has  a  moulded  edge,  which 
is  very  unusual.  Please  notice  these  locks  are  not  made  rights  and  lefts,  but  as  in  the  old  style  one  lock  does 
for  both,  the  key  in  one  case  being  put  in  reversed.  A  plain  oval  brass  escutcheon  is  provided  for  the  outside. 


OBVERSE  AND  REVERSE  OF  THE  PINE-TREE  SHILLING 

Pine-Tree  Shilling 

IT  was  counted  a  great  event  in  America  for  the  Colonies  when  this  coin  was  struck  and  we  feel  we  are 
honored  by  the  connection  of  our  old  house  with  this  event.  There  is  a  bronze  tablet  on  the  side  of  the 
shop  here  commemorating  the  fact.  Joseph  Jenks  also  made  here  the  first  fire  engine  for  the  City  of  Boston, 
and  his  descendants  are  still  engaged  in  the  iron  business  in  the  adjoining  state.  It  is  an  interesting  incidence 
of  persistence  of  one  branch  of  craftsmanship. 

The  latches  below  on  the  right  are  not  recommended  by  us,  as  they  are  purely  eighteenth-century  pro¬ 
ductions.  Nevertheless,  some  architects  favor  them.  An  interesting  point  about  these  is  that  the  extreme 
right-hand  piece  seems  to  have  been  cut  out  from  the  plate  so  that  the  ornamentation  on  the  bottom  is  a 
reverse  of  that  at  the  top.  Thus  one  cutting  on  the  flat  bar  answered  for  two  ends. 


Eighteenth-Century  Hinges 

ABOVE  is  shown  a  considerable  variety  of  the  H,  HL,  and  HLL  hinge  which  was  ordinarily  in  use  on 
■  good  houses  during  the  eighteenth  century.  These  are  all  shown,  both  with  scroll  ends  and  plain, 
except  1-3,  which  may  also  be  supplied  with  scrolls.  These  are  generally  made  in  two  sizes,  about  7  inches 
and  about  10  inches.  Ten  inches  is  none  too  large  for  an  average  door.  If  it  is  desired  to  attach  a  door 
with  special  security,  a  plain  H  hinge  may  be  used  in  the  center  ;  thus  the  door  would  be  equipped  with  three 
hinges  and  provided  against  any  springing  at  the  center.  The  butterfly  hinges  shown,  1-51  and  1-52,  show 
the  earlier  and  later  type.  They  were  commonly  used  on  tip  tables  and  on  small  cupboards.  The  ham¬ 
mered  hinge,  1-31,  was  in  very  common  use  on  the  doors,  sheds,  and  barns,  and  in  kitchens  and  even  on  cup¬ 
boards  on  the  main  part  of  the  house.  It  is,  of  course,  used  with  a  gudgeon.  The  numbers  1-13  and  1-15 
are  especially  attached  for  cupboards,  being  usually  of  a  small  design,  but  1-15  can  of  course  be  made  large 
enough  for  an  ordinary  house  door.  No.  1-366  is  designed  as  a  fastener  for  the  cupboard  door,  having  a 
drop  latch,  converting  it  into  an  H  and  matching  nicely  the  H  hinges. 

It  was  the  custom  on  simple  houses  to  leave  all  these  hinges  black.  In  the  better  houses,  however,  and 
the  parlors  particularly,  they  were  painted  over  white.  In  our  modern  reconstruction  of  old  types  it  has 
generally  been  felt  desirable  to  let  the  hinge  speak  boldly  for  itself  and  so  is  painted  black.  The  plain  H 
hinge  was  often  covered  as  to  half  of  its  surface  by  the  finish  of  the  door  and  then  appears  as  an  I  hinge. 
The  writer,  however,  has  never  seen  an  I  hinge  and  doubts  if  they  were  ever  made. 

In  attaching  these  hinges  the  nails  should  be  of  the  right  length  to  pass  through  and  clinch.  By  careful 
work  this  clinching  can  be  done  to  be  wholly  unobtrusive.  It  is  not  feasible  to  make  secure  attachment  in 
soft  wood  without  clinching. 


Special  Hinges 

ABOVE  are  shown  over  1-41  the  usual  door  hinge  of  the  seventeenth  century  which  goes  under  the  name 
•  strap  and  butterfly.  It  is  very  crude  and  quaint,  and  appropriate  for  all  houses  where  the  wood  is 
left  in  the  natural  colors  unfinished.  1-42  and  1-43  are  variants  of  the  same  quaint  early  style.  1-37  is 
often  made  in  a  very  large  size  and  has  a  good  arrow  head  with  a  scrolled  gudgeon  and  a  screw  thread,  the 
pieces  below  being  used,  one  on  one  side  and  two  on  the  other,  as  washers,  the  smallest  of  the  three  being  a 
hand-ornamented  nut.  This  hinge  is  designed  to  be  used  where  the  gudgeon  goes  entirely  through  the  jamb 
and  is  attached  in  plain  view  on  the  other  side.  1-34  is  an  offset  hinge,  used  for  large  outside  doors  like 
the  modem  garages,  or  for  any  purpose  where  an  offset  is  required.  It  is  made  with  a  machine-ground  joint 
and  is  a  nice  piece  of  accurate  work.  The  hinge  1-35  is  the  commonest  form  of  the  strap  hinge  and  goes 
back  to  an  indefinite  antiquity. 


Types  Xot  Shown 

WE  supply  a  great  many  articles  of  which  no  pictures  are  shown  in  this  catalogue;  for  instance,  the 
cotter  pin  or  wire  hinge  used  on  chests  and  many  special  bolts,  hinges,  and  other  designs.  We  will 
make  to  order  any  wrought-iron  house  hardware  from  designs  submitted  or  from  our  own  designs.  We  are 
prepared  to  furnish  the  entire  hardware  for  a  seventeenth-  or  eighteenth-century  house. 

The  object  of  showing  the  brass  lock  on  a  previous  page  was  to  provide  something  for  an  eighteenth- 
century  house  which  was  of  a  sufficiently  ambitious  character  to  demand  brass  on  the  principal  rooms;  in  such 
houses  the  brass  lock  may  be  supplemented  on  the  rear  and  upper  rooms  by  the  iron  lock. 


The  Wallace  Nutting  Productions 

f  I  ^HESE  are  not  confined  to  iron  work,  which  is  the  smallest  of  the  branches  of  our  products.  The  object 
A  of  entering  into  the  ironwork  was  that  it  was  impossible  to  find  anywhere  in  America  a  good  assort¬ 
ment  of  Colonial  designs,  correct  in  detail  and  with  the  early  feeling.  Mr.  Nutting  experienced  difficulty 
in  restoring  old  houses  and  finding  the  types  required.  He  therefore  proved  that  the  making  of  such  articles 
would  supply  a  need. 

Another  branch  of  our  business  is  the  making  of  Windsor  chairs,  perfectly  correct  in  type  and  in  a  greater 
variety  of  designs  than  any  one  made  of  the  heyday  of  that  style,  or  attempted. 

To  architects  who  make  application,  or  prospective  buyers,  a  special  catalogue  of  these  chairs  will  be  sup¬ 
plied.  We  also  make  reproductions  of  quaint  seventeenth-century  furniture,  and  we  have  many  pictures  of 
such  pieces  but  no  catalogue  as  yet.  Such  pieces  are  in  some  cases  carried  in  stock,  if  time  permits  their  pro¬ 
duction,  but  in  some  cases  they  are  made  to  order. 

A  third  branch  of  our  business  is  the  well-known  Wallace  Nutting  platinotype,  which  is  the  result  of 
many  journeys  in  many  lands  and  in  many  states  of  our  union,  and  comprises  birches,  blossoms,  and  streams, 
and  many  out-of-door  subjects  of  the  widest  variety. 

In  showing  old-fashioned  interiors,  Mr.  Nutting  has  expended  a  great  deal  of  time  and  trouble  and  has 
secured  a  unique  and  extensive  variety  of  all  good  types  of  interiors  from  the  time  of  the  settlers  to  1800. 
There  are  also  many  foreign  themes,  such  as  cathedrals,  etc.,  mostly  through  western  Europe. 


Renaissance  Hinges 

SOME  of  the  above  hinges  have  stolen  into  this  book  into  company  where  they  are  not  quite  at  home. 

The  elaborate  piece  numbered  1-73  has  hardly  a  place  here  but  was  included  as  showing  how  some  of 
the  simpler  forms  were  derived  from  it.  1-62  and  1-63  are  variants  from  what  is  called  the  coxcomb  hinge, 
which  is  very  much  used  on  cupboards.  It  is  a  piece  that  requires  a  good  deal  of  care  in  manufacture. 
That  on  the  left  is  heckled;  that  on  the  right  is  still  quainter. 


Fireplace  Utensils 

OX  page  6  will  be  seen  under  No.  1-460  a  cut  of  skewers  with  a  quaint  skewer  holder.  The  skewers 
were  used  by  being  inserted  through  the  meat  and  through  the  spit  rod  to  hold  the  meat  in  position. 
No.  1-473  is  a  hook  to  be  nailed  through  the  beam  and  is  accompanied  by  another  several  feet  distant  to 
support  a  drying  pole  in  front  of  the  fireplace  on  which  were  placed  checked  aprons  and  such  articles  as  made 
a  strong  impress  on  childhood  recollection.  The  forks,  etc.,  on  the  opposite  comer  were  called,  when  plain 
and  heavy,  tormentors  with  a  suggestion  of  another  world.  They  were  used  to  take  out  the  meat  from  the 
great  pot.  A  smaller,  daintier  fork  was  used  as  a  toaster.  The  little  basket  was  used  to  roast  an  egg  or  a 
single  chop  and  has  a  swivel  joint  which  may  be  reversed  so  as  to  cook  the  contents  evenly. 


,uJe  ik 

1-350  1-351 


1-590 


rT'HE  large  bolts  above  are  designed  for  outside  doors;  the  smaller  ones  for  cupboards.  1-365  is  a  turn- 
A  buckle  for  a  casement  window.  These  did  not  have  a  striker  but  were  turned  into  a  depression  in  the 
wood,  although  of  course  they  can  be  made  with  strikers.  Three  blind  fasteners  are  shown  above  and  six  below. 


[22] 


[23] 


Seventeenth-Century  Architecture 

THE  American  type  of  seventeenth-century  architecture  was  like  that  of  England  and  retained  many 
hints  of  the  Gothic.  The  overhang  which  appears  on  the  side  of  a  dozen  American  houses  is  the  rarest 
and  the  earliest  type.  Its  origin  was  very  simple,  it  being,  of  course,  only  a  means  of  securing  more  room 
where  houses  were  huddled  in  narrow  side  streets  in  Europe  under  the  protection  of  the  castle.  The  roof 
line  here  shown  has  been  considered  by  many  the  most  attractive  to  be  seen  anywhere  in  our  country;  the 
sweep  of  the  chimney  serving  the  lean-to  and  going  up  into  the  huge  stack  is  very  attractive.  The  finials 
on  the  house  are  copied  from  an  ancient  design  and  preserved  to  us. 

The  hardware  of  these  houses  was,  of  course,  all  wrought,  with  the  exception  perhaps  of  a  pair  of  fire- 
dogs.  In  some  instances  where  iron  was  scarce  or  an  expert  smith  was  not  available,  wooden  hinges  and  latches 
were  in  use,  as  on  the  south  side  of  the  Hazen-Garrison  house  in  Haverhill.  Even  the  pins  which  attached 
such  wooden  gudgeons  to  the  wall  were  sometimes  wood,  and  the  wooden  hinge  is  a  still  rarer  object  of  anti¬ 
quarian  search  than  the  iron  one. 

On  the  Iron  Works  House  below  there  is  no  doubt  that  every  article,  even  to  the  kettle,  was  supplied 
by  the  builder.  The  making  of  wrought  nails  was  an  important  feature  of  forge  work,  and  great  proficiency 
was  attained  by  our  ancestors  in  this  work  so  that  several  hundred  could  be  finished  in  a  day.  The  outside 
doors  were  usually  made  double  and  were  studded  throughout  with  many  nails.  The  fireplaces  in  the  earliest 
houses  did  not  have  cranes  but  a  lug-pole  of  wood  or  iron.  Later  the  crane  was  adopted,  owing  to  its  con¬ 
venience  and  “the  saving  of  the  face”  of  the  housewife,  as  it  could  be  swung  out  away  from  the  heat  of  the 
fire.  Besides  the  quaint  hardware  shown  in  this  book,  all  the  attachments  for  the  homemade  utensils  of 
the  farm  were  a  part  of  the  early  smith’s  work.  Thus  he  made  hetchels  for  the  flax,  and  the  iron  parts  of  the 
flax  and  woolen  spinning  wheels.  It  was  necessary  for  him  to  iron  the  rude  wagons  of  the  day  and  to  make 
the  rings  for  the  ox  yokes.  At  that  time  charcoal  was  used  almost  exclusively  for  forge  fire  and  formed  an 
ideal  substance  for  that  purpose. 

We  find  almost  no  attempts  at  elaborate  ironwork  in  America.  The  museums  seem  to  show  us  nothing 
of  the  kind.  The  wonderful  productions  of  Italy,  Spain,  and  Germany  were  not  attempted,  as  they  were 
beyond  the  needs  of  the  simple  settler.  The  age  of  chivalry  had  passed  away  and  the  modern-time  machinery 
had  not  come  in.  Simplicity  and  strength  mark  the  productions  of  our  forefathers  at  the  forge.  At  the  Iron 
Works  here  in  Saugus  firebaeks  were  cast,  and  in  respect  to  these  alone  was  there  an  attempt  at  artistic  design. 
The  subject  of  firebaeks  is  a  large  one  and  has  been  treated  at  length.  The  fire  room  of  the  Iron  Works 
House  bears  evidence  that  square-cornered  firebaeks  in  a  series  filled  in  nearly  the  entire  rear  of  the  fireplace, 
but  those  treasures  have  long  since  vanished,  although  it  is  our  hope  sometime  to  discover  some  made  here. 

The  casting  of  kettles  was  an  important  feature  of  early  ironwork,  and  happily  we  have  many  examples 
of  them.  There  were  also  made  articles  somewhat  resembling  a  modern  soldering  iron,  which  were  called 
toddy  sticks  or  loggerheads.  The  term  “loggerhead”  doubtless  arose  from  the  circumstance  that  the  piece 
was  the  most  convenient  weapon  of  offense  and  defense.  They  had  no  artistic  merit,  but  such  articles  are 
eagerly  sought  by  the  collector. 


Other  Publications  of  Wallace  Nutting,  Incorporated 

\  X/’E  publish  a  work  on  the  Windsor  chair  distinct  from  our  catalogue  which  shows  about  a  hundred  and 
VV  twenty  types  photographed  from  old  chairs  and  is  the  only  work  of  the  kind.  Its  price  is  $1.50; 
we  also  publish  a  large  picture  catalogue  of  some  thousand  cuts  which  is  loaned  to  the  trade,  and  in  response 
to  many  requests  we  are  offering  to  sell  it  at  $2.50.  We  have  in  process  of  composition  other  works  on  the 
early  architecture  and  the  country  landscapes  of  America. 

The  Iron  Works  House  can  be  seen  on  application,  and  at  our  office  in  Saugus  are  many  examples  of 
hardware  and  furniture  which  we  have  copied. 


[24] 


